This article is one of three that celebrate the beauty of his earrings. Each article in the series features photographs of the collection and explores the history of jewelry.
The magic of Daniel Espinosa's jewelry lies in his innovative and daring designs and sincere respect for form and symmetry. Ultimately, his passion for
excellence drives the Daniel Espinosa brand with each piece beautifully crafted in the finest Mexican silver. Hundreds of highly skilled Mexican artisans bring his designs to life in a multitude of dazzling artistic forms. The process that produces this dramatic jewelry begins with the silver or gold melted to form ingots. Next the ingots are laminated into plates. Pressure is then applied to the plates in the minting process and a variety of forms are created. The forms are then carved into a myriad of shapes that when welded together become exquisite pieces of jewelry. The final step in the process is polishing the pieces to a lustrous shine. A new collection is born!
History of Earrings from Ancient Times to 19th Century
Earrings are believed to have originated in Western Asia about 3000 B.C. The oldest
were discovered by archaeologists in Iraq at the royal graves of Ur and are thought to be from about 2,500 B.C. Gold, silver, and bronze hoops have been found in ancient graves in Crete that date to about 2000 B.C. Ear piercing is one of the oldest known forms of body modification, and artistic and written references from ancient cultures around the world tell us that earrings were extremely popular and worn on an everyday basis. The Greeks sometimes even put earrings on statues.From earliest times, there were two primary styles of earrings, hoops and pendants. Also between 1559 B.C. to 1085 B.C., during the New Kingdom of ancient Egypt, earplugs were fashionable as seen in sculptures of King Tutankhamen. This type of earring fit into a widely stretched hole in the earlobe.
In the Dark Ages, 1100 B.C. to 800 B.C., when poverty prevailed, jewelry in precious metals were rare, however, some goldsmiths continued working and their earring designs were later reintroduced in Greece around the 7th century B.C.
In the 2nd century A.D., gemstones such as sapphire, emerald, topaz, and
aquamarine were frequently used in lavish earring designs that were flaunted by the wealthy women of the day. In the Middle Ages, from 1200 A.D. to 1500 A.D., earrings were forsaken as fashion dictated high-collared ensembles and elaborate hair styles that covered the ears. Throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance which followed, married women kept their heads covered while in public so earrings were not widely worn at all.Earrings made a strong comeback in the mid-17th century as women began wearing their hair swept up and away from the face. Their design became increasingly intricate and around 1660, the girandole earring made its appearance. This style would remain popular for the next couple of centuries. Large and elaborate, girondoles featured a surmount with three pear-shaped drops suspended from a hook. Jewel encrusted and made of gold or silver, girondoles were extremely heavy and eventually stretched the earlobes. Queen Victoria suffered from elongated earlobes as a result of wearing her grandmother’s girondole earrings. In the late 18th century, the pendeloque earring came on the scene. Longer than girondoles, the pendeloque was also much lighter which made them easier to wear.
Around 1800, jewelers began to mount gemstones, especially diamonds, in open claw-style settings that allowed light to pass through the stone. This
enhanced the appearance of earrings and other jewelry by showing the true beauty of the gemstone. Previously, gemstones were mounted in closed settings with a piece of foil behind the stone to modify their color. Gold was scarce during this period and filigree and cannetille earrings became popular. These earrings consisting of fine gold wires made into lacework patterns, were popular in the 1820’s. By 1840, repousse earrings were de rigeur, and were characterized by patterns embossed upon thin sheets of gold. In the 1840’s and 1850’s, earrings disappeared altogether as once again hairstyles obscured ears. Women also wore wide-brim bonnets with ribbons tied under the chin that precluded earring wear. In the 1860’s, upswept hairstyles came back into fashion and thus earring became popular once more. This period saw a wide variety of earring styles being worn with one of the most popular being very long, almost touching the shoulder.
The 1870’s were an exciting time for earring styles with many outrageous light-hearted novelty earrings being all the rage. Earrings had pictures on them of Chinese landscapes and bowls full of goldfish, and featured the brilliant irridescent green shells from Brazilian beetles, and even lava from Mount Vesuvius. Perhaps a precursor to some of our 21st century earrings?
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